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<H3>XASECO Overview</H3>
<OL>
<LI><H4>Introduction:</H4>
XASECO is a server controller for TMF (both Nations and United) and TMN
written in PHP using a MySQL database. It should also still support
TMO and TMS but I'm unable to test that. The main XASECO program
<b>aseco.php</b> is merely a framework to handle communication with
the dedicated server, handle events, provide logging, and offer support
functionality. All user features and commands are provided by plugins.
<LI><H4>Plugins:</H4>
XASECO runs fine with an empty <b>plugins.xml</b> list, it just
won't do very much. To provide user functionality, add files from
plugins/ directory to the list. Some plugins are essential, such as
plugin.localdatabase.php for communication with the database, while
many others are optional. However, some plugins depend on others being
present (sometimes in the correct order in plugins.xml), so it's best
to preserve as much of the default plugins.xml list as needed.
<LI><H4>Configs:</H4>
Configuration files consist of .XML files in the main directory, as
well as some of the .PHP files in the includes/ directory. The most
important one is <b>config.xml</b>, containing many of the basic
settings, messages, and server and admin definitions. Other config
files are typically related to one specific plugin or set of plugins
(like RASP with <b>rasp.xml</b> and <b>rasp.settings.php</b>).
<LI><H4>Database:</H4>
Using the MySQL database requires the <b>plugin.localdatabase.php</b>
plugin configured via <b>localdatabase.xml</b>. It stores information
about tracks, players, local records, all finishes, karma (or old
style) votes, player ranks, and more.
<LI><H4>Help:</H4>
The main <i>/help</i> command provided by <b>chat.help.php</b> lists
all available chat commands in a chat message, while <i>/helpall</i>
generates a window that includes descriptions. Other plugins
sometimes include a help command (<i>/helpdedi</i> for Dedimania,
<i>/helpvote</i> for chat-based votes) and some commands include a
help option (e.g. <i>/admin helpall</i>, <i>/list help</i>, etc).
<LI><H4>Players:</H4>
Player connects and disconnects are handled by the main aseco.php
program and relayed to plugins via the onPlayerConnect and
onPlayerDisconnect events. The <i>/players</i> command is provided
by the <b>chat.players.php</b> plugin, while <b>chat.players2.php</b>
provides a couple of related commands.
<LI><H4>Local Records:</H4>
Local records are determined and stored by the
<b>plugin.localdatabase.php</b> plugin, and can be displayed
by the <i>/recs</i> command from the <b>chat.records.php</b>
plugin. Additional record rankings and listings are provided by
the <b>chat.records2.php</b> plugin, while <b>chat.recrels.php</b>
offers record relation commands. The maximum number of records
per track is defined in <b>rasp.settings.php</b>.
<LI><H4>Dedimania Records:</H4>
Dedimania records are determined and stored on the central <A
HREF="http://www.dedimania.com/tmstats/?do=stat">Dedimania site</A>
by the <b>plugin.dedimania.php</b> plugin, and can be displayed by the
<i>/dedirecs</i> command from the <b>chat.dedimania.php</b> plugin.
Additional record rankings and listings, as well as record relations,
are provided by the same plugin. All related configuration options
and messages are provided in <b>dedimania.xml</b> (the maximum number
of records per track should be kept at 30). Detailed information can
be found in the <A HREF="Features_095.html">v0.95 release notes</A>.
<LI><H4>Checkpoints:</H4>
Players can keep track of their relative performance at
each checkpoint with the <i>/cps</i> command, provided by the
<b>plugin.checkpoints.php</b> plugin. Normally it uses the player's
own (or any other) local record as reference, if checkpoints are
available for that record, and shows whether each crossing is faster
or slower in the CPS panel above the main racing time (TMF) or in
a brief pop-up window (TMN). If the Dedimania system is enabled,
the <i>/dedicps</i> command can be used to compare the times with the
player's own (or any other) Dedimania record instead. Both settings
are stored for all players, and reloaded upon every visit. More
information can be found in the <A HREF="Features_093.html">v0.93</A>,
<A HREF="Features_098.html">v0.98</A> and <A
HREF="Features_106.html">v1.06</A> release notes.
<LI><H4>Anti-cheat checks:</H4>
When the <b>plugin.checkpoints.php</b> plugin is active, it also checks
checkpoints and finish times in several ways to reduce the chances of
cheated races resulting in local and Dedimania records. See the <A
HREF="Features_105.html">v1.05 release notes</A> for more information.
<LI><H4>Rounds:</H4>
When the <b>plugin.rounds.php</b> plugin is active in Rounds, Team and
Cup (TMF) mode, a report with each player's finish time is shown after
each run. It serves no purpose in TimeAttack, Laps and Stunts mode.
<LI><H4>Track Lists & Jukebox:</H4>
The <b>plugin.rasp_jukebox.php</b> plugin provides the <i>/list</i>
command to list, search for and select from the available tracks
with a wide variety of options. Players can pick any track from the
list that hasn't been played recently, and add it to a jukebox of
tracks that's given precedence over tracks from the regular server
rotation. This is controlled by a number of configuration settings
in <b>rasp.settings.php</b>.
<LI><H4>TMX</H4>
Specific tracks can be downloaded and added directly from <A
TARGET="_blank" HREF="http://www.tm-exchange.com/">TMX</A> with the
<i>/add</i> command (in <b>plugin.rasp_jukebox.php</b>) and <i>/admin
add</i> command (in <b>chat.admin.php</b>). Searching on TMX can be
done with <i>/xlist</i>, while the <b>plugin.tmxinfo.php</b> plugin
offers commands to display track information. More information
can be found in the <A HREF="Features_093.html">v0.93</A> and <A
HREF="Features_101.html">v1.01</A> release notes.
<LI><H4>Karma:</H4>
Karma votes are an easy way for players to indicate via <i>/++</i>
or <i>/--</i> commands whether they like or don't like a track,
provided by the <b>plugin.rasp_karma.php</b> plugin and configured
by settings in <b>rasp.settings.php</b>. Some details can be found
in the <A HREF="Features_089.html">v0.89 release notes</A>.
<LI><H4>Ranks:</H4>
A player obtains a server rank by racing a minimum number (default 3,
configured in <b>rasp.settings.php</b>) of local ("ranked") records.
The average of a player's records over all server tracks determines
the ranking, managed by the <b>plugin.rasp.php</b> plugin with
<b>plugin.rasp_nextrank.php</b> providing a related command.
<LI><H4>Stats:</H4>
Player stats are displayed by the <i>/stats</i> command from
the <b>chat.stats.php</b> plugin, while server information is
provided by <i>/server</i>, <i>/xaseco</i> and <i>/plugins</i> from
<b>chat.server.php</b>. Related plugins <b>chat.laston.php</b>,
<b>chat.songmod.php</b>, <b>chat.wins.php</b> and
<b>plugin.track.php</b> offer associated commands.
<LI><H4>Tiered Admins:</H4>
The tiered admin system defines three ability levels: MasterAdmins
(specified in <b>config.xml</b>) who can run any admin command, and
Admins and Operators for whom the logins and abilities are specified
in <b>adminops.xml</b>. Typically, Operators are allowed to use
the fewest admin commands, and the abilities list extends beyond
the <i>/admin</i> command to special admin features of user commands
(such as jukeboxing tracks that were played too recently). Admins and
operators can be added and removed dynamically, or their abilities
updated, and <b>adminops.xml</b> will be automatically kept in sync.
See this table for the <A HREF="admin_abilities.html">default list
of abilities</A>, and detailed information can be found in the <A
HREF="Features_088.html">v0.88 release notes</A>.
<LI><H4>Chat-based Votes:</H4>
Chat-based votes allow players to vote on actions that
regular CallVotes don't support, such as ending a round or
replaying a track. When enabled in <b>rasp.settings.php</b>, the
<b>plugin.rasp_votes.php</b> plugin disables CallVotes completely and
offers several voting commands that can be voted on with the <i>/y</i>
command (there is no <i>/n</i> counterpart), and on TMF also via the
vote panel provided by <b>plugin.panels.php</b>. Vote configuration
is done in <b>votes.config.php</b>, and detailed information can be
found in the <A HREF="Features_084.html">v0.84 release notes</A>.
<LI><H4>Public/Private Messages:</H4>
The <b>plugin.rasp_chat.php</b> and <b>chat.me.php</b> plugins
offer a wide variety of commands to quickly shout out a message to
other players. Players' regular chat lines are logged and displayed
by the <b>plugin.chatlog.php</b> plugin. Private messages from one
player to another can be send with the <i>/pm</i> command, from an
admin to a player (Cc-ing all other admins) with <i>/pma</i>, and
from one admin to all other admins with <i>/admin pm</i>.
<LI><H4>Muting/Ignoring:</H4>
Muting (the TMN term) or ignoring (TMF) implies that chat messages
from a specified player are suppressed and aren't readable for other
players in the chat window. Admins can maintain a global list of
muted/ignored players, which on TMF uses the built-in Ignore features
and on TMN a simulated suppression system. The latter system is
also used when an individual player mutes another player using the
commands provided in the <b>plugin.muting.php</b> plugin. See the <A
HREF="Features_090.html">v0.90 release notes</A> for more information.
<LI><H4>Ban, Black- & Guestlist:</H4>
A number of <i>/admin</i> commands from <b>chat.admin.php</b> can be
used to warn (with a pop-up message) or kick players, and to punish
repeat offenders with a ban or blacklist. Bans work by IP address and
are tracked only by the dedicated server, and therefore get purged
by a server restart. Blacklists work by login and are stored in
the <b>blacklist.txt</b> file, and therefore persist across server
restarts. Logins on the guestlist can enter the server even when
the maximum number of players or spectators is reached or when the
server is passworded, and are preserved in the <b>guestlist.txt</b>
file. In addition to these built-in mechanisms, XASECO provides
a list of banned IP addresses in the <b>bannedips.xml</b> file
that also transcends server restarts, with more info in the <A
HREF="Features_103.html">v1.03 release notes</A>.
<LI><H4>Player access</H4>
Besides the above local server mechanisms, player access can
also be managed with the <b>global blacklist</b>, and with
<b>access control</b> by nation (TMN) or zone (TMF). See the <A
HREF="Features_109.html">v1.09 release notes</A> for details. Lastly,
the full Jfreu plugin (below) allows player limiting by rank.
<LI><H4>Admin Commands:</H4>
Other <i>/admin</i> commands control the game flow (ending a round,
skipping to the next or previous track, restarting or replaying
a track), affect the server settings (player/spectator limits,
TMF panels, etc), manage tracks and the jukebox, and much more.
Security of the admin commands and features against unauthorized
use can be warranted with a lock password and by specifying
authorized IP addresses for each admin login. See the <A
HREF="Features_103.html">v1.03 release notes</A> for more information.
<LI><H4>Idlekick:</H4>
Inactive players and, optionally, spectators can be kicked
automatically at the end of each track after a specified number of
tracks by the <b>mistral.idlekick.php</b> plugin. Configuration
settings are included in the plugin itself. Some details can be
found in the <A HREF="Features_090.html">v0.90 release notes</A>.
<LI><H4>Auto TimeLimit:</H4>
With the <b>plugin.autotime.php</b> plugin enabled in TimeAttack mode,
the timelimit for each track is defined dynamically, based on the
track's author time and settings in <b>autotime.xml</b>. See the <A
HREF="Features_104.html">v1.04 release notes</A> for details.
<LI><H4>Jfreu:</H4>
The Jfreu plugins <b>jfreu.plugin.php</b> and <b>jfreu.chat.php</b>
provide a variety of features, including player connect/disconnect
messages, informational messages, rank limiting (with VIP
exceptions), bad word filtering, and more. The first two features
are also available separately in the <b>jfreu.lite.php</b>
plugin in case the rest isn't needed. They are configured via
<b>jfreu.config.php</b> and changed options are automatically stored in
the <b>jfreu/jfreu.config.xml</b> file. More information is available
in the <A HREF="Features_091.html">v0.91 release notes</A>.
<LI><H4>TMF Music:</H4>
The <b>plugin.musicserver.php</b> plugin offers support for playing
server controlled music instead of the default game music and,
optionally, even overriding a track's own song. The <i>/music</i>
command includes a simple jukebox feature as well as admin options,
and .OGG comments (ID3 tags) can also be displayed. Configuration
is done in <b>musicserver.xml</b>, and more information can
be found in the <A HREF="Features_099.html">v0.99</A>,
<A HREF="Features_102.html">v1.02</A> and <A
HREF="Features_104.html">v1.04</A> release notes.
<LI><H4>TMF Custom Rounds Points:</H4>
With the <b>plugin.rpoints.php</b> plugin enabled, admins can select
alternative points systems in Rounds mode instead of the standard
10,6,4,3,2,1. Various common systems (like Formula 1 GP and MotoGP)
are included, and completely custom systems can be defined as well.
See the <A HREF="Features_104.html">v1.04 release notes</A> for
details.
<LI><H4>TMF Styles & Panels:</H4>
The main output window can be dynamically customized with a large
number of style templates from the <b>styles/</b> subdirectory, managed
by the <b>plugin.style.php</b> plugin. The <b>plugin.panels.php</b>
plugin provides four panels: the admin panel to easily activate a
handful of the most commonly used admin commands; the donate panel
to easily initiate a donation with a variety of copper amounts; the
records panel to display a track's relevant records; and a temporary
vote panel to easily respond to chat-based votes. Each panel
can be dynamically customized with a number of templates from the
<b>panels/</b> subdirectory. All players' style and panel preferences
are stored, and reloaded upon every visit. Detailed information
can be found in the <A HREF="Features_100.html">v1.00</A>,
<A HREF="Features_101.html">v1.01</A> and <A
HREF="Features_106.html">v1.06</A> release notes.
<LI><H4>TMF Stats Panels:</H4>
Instead of the rank chat messages at the end of each track, on TMF
a personal stats panel can be displayed for each player during the
scoreboard. The stats are: server rank, record average, records total,
wins total, session play time, and donation total (on TMUF servers).
Details are included in the <A HREF="Features_106.html">v1.06 release
notes</A>.
<LI><H4>TMF Message Window:</H4>
When enabled via <b>plugin.msglog.php</b>, the system message window
near the top of the screen can be used to temporarily display a wide
variety of global messages that normally flood the chat window.
These include new/improved/equalled records, record reports
before and after each track, rounds reports, Jfreu Info messages
and several more, all individually configured in their pertaining
config files. See the <A HREF="Features_102.html">v1.02</A> and <A
HREF="Features_103.html">v1.03</A> release notes for more information.
<LI><H4>TMUF Coppers:</H4>
Copper transactions are managed by the <b>plugin.donate.php</b>
plugin, allowing players to donate coppers to the server, and
admins (with the appropriate ability) to pay coppers to any
other login (including another server). More information is
available in the <A HREF="Features_099.html">v0.99</A> and <A
HREF="Features_101.html">v1.01</A> release notes.
</OL>
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<ADDRESS>
Copyright © 2007-2013 – Frans P. de Vries <A HREF="mailto:tm@gamers.org"><tm@gamers.org></A>
Last updated 08-Aug-2010
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